Hallowe'en tips and treats
Blog post written by: Kirsten Bartel
As skies begin to darken and the lights are low, you stand outside in the approaching darkness and look around... the silence broken only by the rustling of dead leaves on gnarly tree branches...
Dark clouds, like long bony fingers, reach across the nearly full moon shining overhead, and your senses become heightened by eerie spirits and a touch of magic in the air... Hallowe'en is upon us once again.
The term Hallowe'en, now often spelled Halloween, is shortened from All Hallows' Eve (eve being an abbreviation of even, an older word for evening.) The "e'en" in Hallowe'en comes from "even" shortened to e'en, from the Old English term meaning "All Hallows' Evening".
The history of the celebrations are long and times have changed from when we would put an old bed sheet over our heads, grab a pillowcase or strong plastic bag and rush out to try to get as many candies as possible. Nowadays it has become a big celebration, filled with parties and theme events for children, adults and dogs alike. Hallowe'en activities include trick-or-treating, wearing costumes and attending costume parties, ghost tours, bonfires, visiting haunted attractions, reading scary stories, cornfield mazes, carving pumpkins, watching horror films — just to name a few.
A few tips on how to have a ghoulish good time for Hallowe'en:
Kids of all ages will still want to dress up so take a gander at the selection of costumes from Creative Education Canada. Since it may be chilly in some parts of the country, you may want to pick up some of these adorable Winter Kitty Hats, add a tail and... Voilà ! your children have been transformed into one of the best known animals of the holiday.
Should you decide to dress up your dog, take care to ensure that the costumes do not have any small parts on which they can choke. Oh, and try to remember your dog's dignity, as they do have sensitive egos.
Treats will be a must for any get together. Check out the variety of goodies from Original Foods or, for a nice Canadian twist to the regular lollipops, try this sweet Maple Flavoured Sucker from Jakeman's. For Potato Chips, I suggest these 100% Canadian Hardbite Chips by Naturally Homegrown Foods, from British Columbia.
They come in a variety of flavours, such as
- All Natural
- Smokin BBQ
- Chedder & Onion
- Salt & Vinegar
- Jalapeno
- Wild Onion & Yoghurt
- Creamy Coconut and Curry Oriental
- Honey Dijon
and even as sticks instead of chips, in Smokin and Jalapeno flavours. Not only are they 100% Canadian, but they are healthy as well. They can be found at many Health Food Stores across the country.
Another great Canadian company who manufactures tasty products such as Nougat Bars, Jelly Beans, Pal O Mine Bars, Bagged Candy and much much more is the Ganong Company, from Saint Stephen, New Brunswick.
What is even better is that Ganong contributes a portion of the proceeds of all their products marked with a pink ribbon to the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation. Something which makes every bite just so much sweeter.
I have seen many reusable eco-bags at local grocery stores with Hallowe'en themes, which can be used instead of the usual plastic bags should you go trick-or-treating.
How about some homemade delights? Chef Michael Smith, a well known Canadian chef who encourages the use of local produce in his recipes, has some wonderful Hallowe'en treats:
More fun recipes:
Witches Brooms
Ingredients
String cheese
Licorice strips
Pretzel sticks
Directions
Shred apart pieces of string cheese in long strips. Take a pretzel stick, and pressing the cheese strips around the end of the stick, tie a piece of string licorice around it, creating a sweep for the broom. Press the licorice and cheese firmly to the pretzel to secure. Continue with remaining pretzels.
Hallowe'en Magic Wands
Ingredients
Pretzel Sticks
Chocolate (melted)
Granular Sugar
Directions
Take the pretzel sticks and dip them into the melted chocolate. Roll the chocolate end in the sugar sprinkles to make the glitter. Continue with remaining pretzels.
Be creative, have fun!
Tim Horton's has Pumpkin Spiced Donuts as well. You can pick up a dozen for the party, or have one with your Pumpkin Spice Muffin and specialty Pumpkin Spice Tea each day until the weekend. Either way, a great way to get your taste buds started toward all the other goodies.
Note: If you would like your dog to share in any Hallowe'en treats, please only give them small pieces of fresh apples and some mashed pumpkin. Sugar and chocolate is toxic for pooches. If you feel like baking special treats, Dogs in Canada magazine has a delicious looking Pumpkin Brownie recipe (without chocolate, of course).
Tarot is another interesting activity to have at your party, either to perform readings or for meditation. The Spiritual Light Tarot by Canadian Marcia Masino is worth exploring. The artwork is inspiring and has the essence of the Aurora Borealis. Marcia Masino is the author of two best selling Tarot books: Easy Tarot Guide and Best Tarot Practices, available through Chapters Indigo and has designed two Tarot Decks.
No Hallowe'en would be complete without mentioning one of the many Haunted Tours across the country. Here are some tours you can check out in Ontario and Quebec:
Find one in your local area or make a trip out of it. Hallowe'en tours are on now until October 31.
Now gather around the bonfire and look out for the Ghosts and Spirits all around us — can you sense them? Happy Hallowe'en!
Image Sources: Flickr Creative Commons, John Morgan, Andy Hay, Allen Dale Thompson, BuyCanadianFirst.ca, Homegrown Foods, Ganong, Flicker Creative Commons, Tara Alton, Tim Horton's
